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Gatekeeping | Gatewatching

Journalism 101 Reynolds School of Journalism September 2010. Gatekeeping | Gatewatching. Gatekeeping.

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Gatekeeping | Gatewatching

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  1. Journalism 101 Reynolds School of Journalism September 2010 Gatekeeping | Gatewatching

  2. Gatekeeping • “A regime of control over what content is allowed to emerge from the production processes in print and broadcast media; the controllers (journalists, editors, owners) of these media…control the gates through which content is released to their audiences.” (Axel Bruns,Gatewatching, p.11)

  3. Gatekeeping as a form of filter • News organizations have to limit the amount of information they gather and distribute; they can’t gather and report everything. • We all use filters to organize and limit the amount of news and information we process

  4. Deliberate gatekeeping • The question is whether our filters are deliberate, accessible and open to adjustment • Or whether they are unconscious, out of our control or systematically arranged to prevent certain ideas from reaching the public

  5. Governmental “gatekeeping” • Censorship acts as a gate to prevent certain ideas from reaching the public • This Iranian-Canadian blogger was just sentenced to 19 years in prison for blogging about Iranian politics:

  6. U.S. examples • This is “Banned Books” week. Excerpts of banned books will be read tonight at 6 pm in the Knowledge Center • Banned Book Reading • In this week’s Sagebrush, VP Steven Zink says they are considering “temporarily shutting off areas of Internet access” on campus to reduce music piracy

  7. Journalistic gatekeeping • Favors some groups over others, some places more than other places • Promotes some ideals more than others • Covers some kinds of news more than other kinds • Is influenced by economic concerns

  8. Mass media gatekeeping occurs • In the newsgathering stage • In the news publishing stage • In the response stage

  9. Push media vs. pull media • Gatekeeping differs between books, newspapers and magazines (pull media), and radio and television (pull media). • What is the Web? Cell phones? ipads?

  10. Live news • Alters the gatekeeping practices of journalists • The question of ‘what is appropriate’ always lingers • “Our involvement in a story can change things forever”

  11. Online news changes gatekeeping • Large number of news outlets • Low barriers to entry • 24/7 availability • Global access to sources

  12. Social media makes gatekeeping even more chaotic • Secrets are very difficult to keep • Anyone can publish any time • Control moves from the publisher to the audience, from the source to the receiver, from the institution to the individual

  13. We still need “centers” • “Gatewatchers” observe the output gates of news publications and other sources in order to identify important material as it becomes available • We need order, surveillance, warning systems to alert us; information for action, decision making; culture for connection and community

  14. Twitter, Facebook, news sites, newspapers, magazines… • Enable individuals to select their own set of “gatewatchers” to follow, read and share • Gatewatchers can be ‘citizen editors,’ professional journalists, experts, friends with similar interests • We also perform our own gatewatching of primary sources

  15. How Twitter works • See the videos posted on our wiki site (under Sept. 29) • Here’s the most basic:“How to use Twitter”

  16. Case study • A human rights journalist working for Mother Jones magazine • Mac McClelland tweets her reporting experiences • She is in Haiti covering the aftermath of the earthquake; violence against women is a terrible problem in the temporary tent camps (Interviews with victims)

  17. Tweeting an interview with a rape victim • The journalist, who will write an in-depth story for Mother Jones magazine, is tweeting about her experiences of reporting in Haiti. • @MacMcClelland(Twitter account) • She twittered an interview she conducted with a rape victim, including going with her to the doctor

  18. Editor’s opinion • Mother Jones’ editor, Clara Jeffrey, gave her approval for the journalist to tweet the story.

  19. Filters for this story • Journalist level: She had to decide whether to use Twitter or not • Editor level: She had to decide whether to let the journalist twitter or not • Distribution level: Haiti and Twitter have to decide whether to block communication • Receiver level: The receiver has to decide whether to subscribe to the tweets or not

  20. Where would you put the filters? • It’s the responsibility of the individual journalist to avoid sensationalism, possible exploitation • It’s the responsibility of the news organization to avoid potentially offensive or harmful communication • It’s the responsibility of the individual to set his or her own filters

  21. Choose filter #1, #2 or #3 • Get in a group of like-minded students • Share your reasons for why you support that particular level of filter. • Have someone record the reasons. • Have someone volunteer to articulate the reasons to the rest of the class. • You have ____ minutes to do this.

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